And herbert g



2 Sheets-Sheet l.

A, WgBEST &H. G. UNDERWOOD.

DEVICE FOR TRANSMITTING- POWER.

No. 416,090. Patented Now 26, 1889.

(No Model.)

WITNESSES: INVENTOB 5. .SZWM Wfieoyt, v -Herbcl;;t a Under wood,

BY ATTY'S.

N. PETERS Pholoutw n hsr, Washinglom 0.4:.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

A. W. BEST & H. G. UNDERWOOD. DEVIOE FOR TRANSMITTING POWER.

No. 416,090. Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

WITNESSES: INVENTDR c5082 (Llama/nae) W Bes,l7, W Herbcmt (i UIZdcJ'wOOd,

BY ATTY'S';

N. PETERS. PhnhrLillwgmphen Wflhingmn. D C,

UNITED STATES ALEXANDER w. BEST, or BROOKLYN,

\VOOD, OF MARION, NEXV JERSEY,

PATENT OFFICE.

NEW YORK, AND HERBERT G. UNDER- ASSIGNORS OF ONE-HALF 'TO ALFRED H. DRIGGS, OF MARION, AND CHARLES A. MCLAUGHLIN, OF MARTINS- VILIJE, NEYV JERSEY.

DEVICE FOR TRANSMITTING POWER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 416,090, dated November 26, 1889.

Application filed December 3, 1888. Renewed October 15, 1889. Serial No. 827,056. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, ALEXANDER TV. BEST, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, and HERBERT G. UN-

DERWOOD, of Marion, Hudson county, and State of New Jersey, citizens of the United States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Transmitting Power; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters I 5 of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to provide improved means for transmitting the power of. an electric motor of a railway-car to the wheels thereof or toany other place where power may be required; to avoid the use of gears, either straight or beveled, such as have commonly been employed, and thereby secure a more perfect and noiseless movement; to secure a direct coupling of all the axles with the said motor without the use of connecting-rods, chains, or sprocket-wheels of any kind; to enable the parts to adjust themselves to all unevenness of the rails, whether 0 straight or curved, thereby reducing the amount of friction; to enable the speed to be varied more readily without the use of additional parts; to enable the car to be stopped more gradually andsmoothly and with greater 3 5 ease and positiveness, and to otherwise provide a more simple, economical, and lightrunning device than has heretofore been employed in the devices heretofore in use.

The invention consists in the improved means for transmitting power, and in the arrangements and combinations of parts thereof, substantially as will be hereinafter set forth, and finally embodied in the clauses of the claim.

In the drawings I have shown my inven-,

Referring to the accompanying drawings, embraced in two sheets, in which like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each of the several figures, Figure 1 is a plan showing a truck of a railway-car embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a section of the 5 5 same, taken on line Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view through line a, Fig. 1, and showing a wheel with a handle on the outer end of the worm-shaft. Fig. at is a top plan view showing an improved construction of bear- 6o ings for the armature-shaft. Fig. 5 is a detail View showing one of the armature-bearings shown in Fig. 4; and Fig. 6 is a section through line y, Fig. 4.

In said drawings, a a are axles of a railway- 6 car; I) b, the wheels thereof. 0 c are bearings of peculiar construction, adapted to receive I the said axles and also an armature-shaft cl, extending from one axle to the other axle of the car. The said armature-shaft is shown as lying in an inclined position adapted to pass under and over the front or rear axles, respectively, so as to turn both axles in the same direction, substantially as indicated in Fig. 2, the said armature-shaft lying at right angles or approximately at right angles to the said axles and at or about the longitudinal center of the car. Upon the said axles are arranged worm-wh eels c, and at the ends of said armature-shaft the same are provided with angular screwthreads or worms ff, adapted to engage the said wheels 6.

g indicates magnets which are secured to and carried by the frame h, secured to the shaft (Z, and i is another frame secured to the bearings c in any suitable manner. These magnets g are pivoted to the frame t' at a central point g, so as to give them, with the shaft (Z, a pivotal motion, so as to overcome any unevenness of the track or when the 0 wheels on one axle are passing over any stone or obstruction on the rail.

j indicates an armature fixed upon the armature-shaft and adapted to impart motion thereto, the armature being actuated by an electric current in any ordinarymanner, and 7c is a commutator on shaft d. The motion imparted to the shaft (Z by the armature is transmitted by the worm on the ends of shaft (Z to the axles and car-wheels, causing both said car-axles to revolve in the same direction and the ear to move, as will be un derstood. The bearings c c are formed, as shown in Fig. 2, so that the portion in which the shaft (1 revolves shall be at exactly right angles with the line of position of the shaft d, as will be manifest. The portion of the bearings c c in which the shaft (1 revolves is provided with adjustable caps or covers 0' 0' to hold said shaft in position.

In Fig. at we have shown a modified form of securing the motor on the worm-shaft. In said figure, m represents astrap or band passing over the magnets g, and provided at its ends with boxes or bearings m m in which the shaft (Z revolves. The worm-shaft extends at one end above one of the axles and at the other end below the other axles, and each worm is continually in contact with its respective worm-wheel on the axle. The pitch or throw of the worms must be in opposite directions. We have also shown the worm as constructed single; but when greater power or speed is desired two or more worms can be used, andtherefore we do not limit ourselves to the use of a single worm on the wormshaft.

By the use of this device aperfectly-direct coupling of all axles of a car is accomplished without the employment of side connectingrods forsteadying the axles, nor are chains or sprocket-wheels or frictional mechanism required, as when the power is applied only to one axle and then transmitted to the other axle.

All the parts being centrally located, they readily adapt themselves automatically to all unevenness or obstructions on the rail, whether the track be straight or curved.

No additional parts are required to increase the speed when it is desired, and the wormshaft, as will be manifest, forms of itself a perfect stop-brake as soon as the motive force is removed, and a car when going at high rate of speed can with our improved mechanism be stopped in much less time than by any other brake in use.

In case of any accident to the motor, whereby the power is disconnected or for any cause fails, we have provided on one end of the worm-shaft a l1and-crank whee], whereby a person can by turning the crank by hand move the car in either direction.

\Ve make no claim to the electric motor nor to any of its mechanism or the manner of applying the electricity to the shaft d; nor do we claim, broadly, the use of a worm in transmitting motion.

Having thus described ourinvention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, with the main drivingshaft of an electric motor for propelling a car, of a frame holding said shaft and pivotally connected, as at g, to said motor, bearings for said shaft secured to the ends of said frame and at right angles to the direction of said shaft, a worm on each end of'said shaft, and a worm-wheel secured to each car-axle and adapted to be operated by said worms, as shown, and for the purposes set forth.

2. The combination, with the main drivingshaft of a motor for propelling a car, of a frame for holding the shaft and motor,'bearings for said shaft secured to the ends of said frame, worms on each of the ends of said shaft, worm-wheels secured to each of the caraxles and adapted to be operated continually by said worms, and a crank or handle on one end of the shaft, all as shown, and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto set our hands this 23d day of November, 1888.

ALEXANDER XV. BEST. HERBERT G; UNDERVOOD.

NVitnesses:

OLIVER DRAKE, E. L. SHERMAN. 

